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EDITORS’ NOTES

“Proud Mary,” “Bad Moon Rising,” “Lodi,” “Down on the Corner,” “Fortunate Son,” “Travelin’ Band”…the list is long and impressive. Singer John Fogerty felt at home imagining the Louisiana Bayou and the “swamp rock” that his ominous guitar tone suggested, which is pitched to perfection among the dark clouds of “Run Through the Jungle” and “Who’ll Stop the Rain.”

Chronicle: The 20 Greatest Hits

EDITORS’ NOTES

“Proud Mary,” “Bad Moon Rising,” “Lodi,” “Down on the Corner,” “Fortunate Son,” “Travelin’ Band”…the list is long and impressive. Singer John Fogerty felt at home imagining the Louisiana Bayou and the “swamp rock” that his ominous guitar tone suggested, which is pitched to perfection among the dark clouds of “Run Through the Jungle” and “Who’ll Stop the Rain.”

TITLE

TIME

Susie Q

4:34

I Put a Spell On You

4:31

Proud Mary

3:07

Bad Moon Rising

2:20

Lodi

3:10

Green River

2:32

Commotion

2:43

Down On the Corner

2:45

Fortunate Son

2:18

Travelin' Band

2:07

Who'll Stop the Rain

2:27

Up Around the Bend

2:41

Run Through the Jungle

3:04

Lookin' Out My Back Door

2:32

Long As I Can See the Light

3:30

I Heard It Through the Grapevine

11:02

Have You Ever Seen the Rain

2:40

Hey Tonight

2:42

Sweet Hitch Hiker

2:53

Someday Never Comes

4:02

20 Songs, 1 Hour, 7 Minutes

℗ 2011 Concord Music Group, Inc.

Ratings and Reviews

4.6 out of 5

294 Ratings

294 Ratings

You don't own music, if you don't own this

Nov 9, 2012

Slimeyvaginy

Unless you've been living under a rock for 40+ years, you've heard CCR and all the amazing music on this album. The songs on this album transcend the 60s and classic rock to the point of being in the subconscious mind.

Even if you DONT own any CCR today. Buy the album, I will guarantee you will know every single song!

You don't own music, if you don't own this

Nov 9, 2012

Slimeyvaginy

Unless you've been living under a rock for 40+ years, you've heard CCR and all the amazing music on this album. The songs on this album transcend the 60s and classic rock to the point of being in the subconscious mind.

Even if you DONT own any CCR today. Buy the album, I will guarantee you will know every single song!

CCR is right.

Jan 17, 2013

D-COWBOYS

Timeless classic rock is what CCR is. Up there with the stones and Zeppelin if your a hardcore Classic Rock fan you would agree . Vol.1 & 2 is all the CCR you need. Love CCR. From the Bay Area to the world Creedence clear water revival awesome music.

CCR is right.

Jan 17, 2013

D-COWBOYS

Timeless classic rock is what CCR is. Up there with the stones and Zeppelin if your a hardcore Classic Rock fan you would agree . Vol.1 & 2 is all the CCR you need. Love CCR. From the Bay Area to the world Creedence clear water revival awesome music.

One of the best Albums I own

Feb 7, 2013

rockydempsey

CCR is a little before my time, alright 25 years before my time but man, they sure have some great music. I picked up this album for less than $5.00 about 3 months ago and I love every song.

One of the best Albums I own

Feb 7, 2013

rockydempsey

CCR is a little before my time, alright 25 years before my time but man, they sure have some great music. I picked up this album for less than $5.00 about 3 months ago and I love every song.

About Creedence Clearwater Revival

At a time when rock was evolving away from the forces that had made the music possible in the first place, Creedence Clearwater Revival brought things back to their roots with their concise synthesis of rockabilly, swamp pop, R&B, and country. Though the music of CCR was very much a group effort in their tight, punchy arrangements, their vision was very much singer, songwriter, guitarist, and leader John Fogerty's. Fogerty's classic compositions for Creedence both evoked enduring images of Americana and reflected burning social issues of the day. The band's genius was their ability to accomplish this with the economic, primal power of a classic rockabilly ensemble.

The key elements of Creedence had been woodshedding in bar bands for about a decade before their breakthrough to national success in the late '60s. John's older brother Tom formed the Blue Velvets in the late '50s in El Cerrito, California, a tiny suburb across the bay from San Francisco. By the mid-'60s, with a few hopelessly obscure recordings under their belt, the band -- including Tom and John with two high-school friends, drummer Doug Clifford and bassist Stu Cook -- signed to Fantasy, releasing several singles as the Golliwogs that went nowhere. In fact, there's little promise to be found on those early efforts; they were extremely derivative of the British Invasion and other R&B and rock trends of the day, with few hints of the swampy roots rock that would characterize CCR. The group only found themselves when John took firm reins over the band's direction, singing and writing virtually all of their material.

On their first album, 1968's Creedence Clearwater Revival, the group played it both ways, offering extended, quasi-psychedelic workouts of the '50s classics "I Put a Spell on You" and "Suzie-Q." The latter song became their first big hit, but the band didn't really bloom until "Proud Mary," a number two single in early 1969 that demonstrated John's talent at tapping into Southern roots music and imagery with a natural ease. It was the start of a torrent of classic hits from the gritty, Little Richard-inspired singer over the next two years, including "Bad Moon Rising," "Green River," "Down on the Corner," "Travelin' Band," "Who'll Stop the Rain," "Up Around the Bend," and "Lookin' Out My Back Door."

Creedence also made good albums -- Green River, Willy and the Poor Boys, and Cosmo's Factory all rank among the best of the rock era -- but their true forte was as a singles band. When the Beatles broke up in early 1970, CCR was the only other act that provided any competition in the fine art of crafting bold, super-catchy artistic statements that soared to the upper reaches of the charts every three or four months. Although they hailed from the San Francisco area, they rarely succumbed to the psychedelic indulgences of the era. John Fogerty also proved adept at voicing the concerns of the working class in songs like "Fortunate Son," as well as partying with as much funk as any white rock band would muster on "Travelin' Band" and "Down on the Corner."

With John Fogerty holding such a strong upper hand, Creedence couldn't be said to have been a democratic unit, and Fogerty's dominance was to sow the seeds of the group's quick dissolution. Tom Fogerty left in 1971 (recording a few unremarkable solo albums of his own), reducing the band to a trio. John allowed drummer Doug Clifford and bassist Stu Cook equal shares of songwriting and vocal time on the group's final album, Mardi Gras (1972), which proved conclusively that Fogerty's songs and singing were necessary to raise CCR above journeyman status.

It was John Fogerty, of course, who produced the only notable work after the quartet broke up. Even his solo outings, though, were erratic and, for nearly ten years, nonexistent as he became embroiled in a web of business disputes with Fantasy Records. His 1984 album Centerfield proved he could still rock in the vintage Creedence mode when the spirit moved him, but Tom Fogerty's death in 1990 ended any hopes of a CCR reunion with the original members intact. ~ Richie Unterberger